Global Palestine Connected Gaza

The devastating consequences of recurrent conflict in Gaza pose an urgent need, as well as a unique opportunity, to think differently about a sustainable approach to its development – in the understanding that the cycle of violence needs to stop, and that political, institutional and security stability are pre-requisites for any long-term solution on the ground.

In the aftermath of the 2014 Gaza war, The Portland Trust (TPT) began exploring options to design and implement an intervention to help inform Gaza’s development in the short, medium and long-term – with the assistance of AECOM, a global-leading planning and engineering firm we partnered. Following, field visits to Gaza and the West Bank, extensive consultation with a wide range of Palestinian and international stakeholders, and months of intense work, AECOM and TPT defined a proposal for an ambitious project, aimed at developing a comprehensive long-term spatial vision for Gaza. The concept quickly garnered ample support from the local private sector, the Palestinian government and the international community.

Notably, a group of leading Palestinian businesses decided to champion the initiative, steering its development and providing the necessary funding. TPT played a coordinating role, informed the technical work and supported the efforts from inception with additional funding.

Following seven technical missions to the region between June 2015 and April 2016, AECOM and TPT prepared a final report, ‘Global Palestine, Connected Gaza’, presenting key findings, technical recommendations and proposals for the implementation of the vision.

The spatial vision is rooted in a deep understanding of current conditions in Gaza, Palestine as a whole and the broader region. This forms the basis for comprehensive demographic and economic modelling, which in turn informs estimates on potential for growth and job creation based on trade, exchange, economic specialisation and regional cooperation. The projections underpin deep spatial analysis, structured around for key elements: urban development, transportation, energy and water and environment and open space.

Key proposals and projects for each of the elements are defined around three time horizons, covering the short, medium and long-term (notionally envisaged as 2050), with each of these timescales assuming a particular set of political conditions and stressing different objectives and priorities.

Whilst the work acknowledges current constraints and political conditions, it assumes that in the future Gaza would be open and connected to the West Bank as part of a Palestinian State, and living in peace and security with its neighbouring countries.